Benedict Saul "Benni" McCarthy (born 12 November 1977 in Cape Town, South Africa) is a South African professional footballer, currently playing for English side Blackburn Rovers.
Benni McCarthy was born and grew up in Hanover Park on the Cape Flats, an area notorious for its high unemployment rate and gang violence. He is the son of Dudley (†2008) and Dora McCarthy and has two brothers and a sister. His older brother is Jerome McCarthy, a former ...
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Benedict Saul "Benni" McCarthy (born 12 November 1977 in Cape Town, South Africa) is a South African professional footballer, currently playing for English side Blackburn Rovers.
Benni McCarthy was born and grew up in Hanover Park on the Cape Flats, an area notorious for its high unemployment rate and gang violence. He is the son of Dudley (†2008) and Dora McCarthy and has two brothers and a sister. His older brother is Jerome McCarthy, a former professional footballer who played for Kaizer Chiefs and Manning Rangers among others while his younger brother Mark played football at Franklin Pierce University in the United States.
Benni McCarthy started playing at a local side called Young Pirates which was managed by his uncles. He then joined the youth structures of a local amateur club called Crusaders. At age 17, he was signed by 1st division club Seven Stars.
McCarthy has dated model Amy Leigh Barnes who was found murdered in her home on 8 November 2008.
Playing for Seven Stars, the...
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